It happens to every good emcee – they get on a winning streak with a few hit singles, a classic album or two, and then they decide to venture outside of the boundaries that made them such a favorite in the first place….. and they fail. Some fall harder than others (Ice Cube, Canibus , Big Daddy Kane), while others get a lucky break and somehow reclaim their past glory as if the mistakes were never made (Dr. Dre, Nas, Jay-Z). Case in point is Royce Da 5’9. Known to some as only the “other guy” on “Bad Meets Evil” from Eminem’s The Slim Shady LP, Royce made quickly made a name for himself in the underground with smash Game singles “I’m The King” and “Boom”, not to mention a collaborative 12inch with Em as the Bad Meets Evil duo. And he was on the right track for a while, as the driving force behind the hip-hop radio station on Grand Theft Auto 3, but shortly thereafter things started to run off course. 

      Royce originally signed with Tommy Boy, who for some reason didn’t believe in him, and released him from his contract shortly thereafter. Columbia shortly stepped in with the intent to release his debut Rock City, but as of 2002, Royce had recorded over three albums of material, and still had only seen his album released overseas by Columbia. Game Recordngs CEO, Jonathan Shecter, stepped in again shortly thereafter to rescue Royce from another doomed Columbia deal (see 50 Cent & Dead Prez), and Rock City finally saw release through Game, via the now defunct Landspeed Distribution. 

     However, during the time period that Royce was tied up in label limbo, he had each Eminem, Paul Rosenberg, his manager Kino, his wife, his parents, and three different labels telling him what his album should sound like. So, in trying to please everyone else but himself, what Rock City ended up being was only a huge disappointment; an amalgamation of four years and three labels worth of music that didn’t go well together at all. To make matters worse, a falling out with Eminem occurred, after Em chose to sign 50 Cent and Obie Trice to Shady Records, overlooking Royce’s continual label woes with Tommy Boy, Columbia, and Game. On the brink of falling off, Royce quickly regained a short burst of consumer confidence last year with the Build and Destroy double-disc endeavor, which not only revealed everything else that was in the vaults (a lot of it much better than what was included on Rock City), but also a disc of new material taking direct shots at Eminem and D12.  Fast forward to today. Enter Death Is Certain. The most important album of Royce’s career – the make or break record. 

     Death Is Certain is Royce Da 5’9 defined. It’s his most honest work to date, almost taking the form of an apology for Rock City laid out in 15 songs. Royce is “through with Slim and his help” and is through with anyone else telling him how to make his record. This is one man putting himself out there with the most honest intent, unafraid of the circumstances. 

     As the album opens with “Regardless”, as Royce realizes that this is the moment of truth, spitting over Carlos Broady’s soulful guitar licks and piano keys, “I don’t even know what’s hot or who’s dissin’ / or who’s consistent / who’s nice or not / who’s on top / or who’s wife is sniffin’ / oh / or who’s meltin’ soon / to be failing / all I know is how the streets felt ’bout ‘Boom’.” With that fact in mind, Royce uses “Boom” as almost the blueprint for this LP – not with the intent of recording an album of strictly battle records – but to record an album of hungry, straight and to the core, raw hip-hop from the heart (as evidenced on the DJ Premier produced lead single named after this great art form itself, “Hip Hop”). 

     Royce’s honesty is spread throughout the majority of the album, as he spits on “I Promise”, an almost open letter to God, his fans, the industry, and anyone else listening, passionately expressing his reason for rhyme over an incredible beat, asking only to be heard. Again on “T.O.D.A.Y.”, Royce questions “Damn, after one quick summer / am I a young emcee or a one hit wonder? / Is it a following that supports me? / BET, MTV, or E True Hollywood Story / Can I hold my own / in rap without having to go back / to Pharrell or Poke and Tone?” Royce knows the answers to these and other questions in the songs, as he starts it out with “I been in this game for years / it made me an animal / I learned that nobody else can be held accountable / but you for your career / not your manager, face it / even he can fuck up a relationship.” On the album’s closer, “Something’s Wrong with Him “, he admits “My wife don’t like my album / she said it sound like I hold grudges / she’d rather listen to Joe Budden’s…,” over yet another ridiculous track from Carlos Broady. 

     Royce’s Death Is Certain is so honest, that is almost sounds as if Royce was looking at himself in a mirror when recording it. However, it’s not all about him – towards the end of the album he dips into other subject matter, such as on the quartet of songs that begins to close the album out. Royce examines “Beef” in a Biggie like narrative, chooses whether to pursue it (“Bomb 1st”) or let it go (“Everybody Goes”), ultimately leading to an incredibly vivid narrative of him in the ER waiting room (“Death Is Certain Pt. 2″), where Royce begs “Death is not no option / I’m pulling money out my pocket, trying to con the doctor / please treat this thug the way that you’d treat your baby / like you’d treat your blood, I’ll pay!!” 

    In all fairness, Death Is Certain does have its lower points (“I & Me”, “Gangsta”), however, as cliche as it sounds, it was the production that held down these few duds, as he’s not missing it lyrically. But with the majority of the beats handled by the incredibly talented Carlos “Six July” Broady (Ghostface Killah, Raekwon), Royce has no problem keeping the listener hanging off of his every word. All in all, Death Is Certain is like Royce’s final exam; he’s passed with flying colors, and is ready to graduate to the next level.